Ah, the time when GPUs got fast enough that desktop compositors all became 3D and GPU-accelerated, and every mainstream OS decided to have cool effects to show off what they could do.

Windows Vista and 7 running Windows Aero, with its transparency, shiny bits, and Flip 3D (Windows + Tab).

Mac OS X Snow Leopard running Aqua, with its rounded buttons and blue scroll bars that were 'lickable globs of Crest Berrylicious Toothpaste Gel'.

And then Apple took a road-roller and flattened every UI element they could starting from OS X Lion and iOS 7; Microsoft and Google soon followed suit.

I unironically miss the late 2000s-aesthetic and human design of operating systems and UIs. But I'll concede that Web has got a lot better.

It's interesting to ponder which inconsequential aspects of modern life will become emblematic of the 2020s in 20 years' time.

I would not have predicted the magenta palm trees of Miami Vice as being representative of the '80s back in the day, and as someone who always switched off the themes in XP and Vista, it surprises me that people are nostalgic for them!

It's unusual to have an article about a Frutiger font with no mention of the namesake typographer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Frutiger

I turned on high contrast mode which helps a lot in terms of usability. The moment I go back, everything just insanely unclear.

The CARI site is such a gem https://cari.institute/aesthetics/frutiger-aero